Waiting
by CsillaDream
Summary: Why did he have to like someone so dense? Why couldn't he like someone his age? And why on earth did that jerk still treat him like he was a kid? AU - Child!Natsu & Teen!Gray / Happy Birthday Kris (mosherocks4)


**Csilla: Dedicated to Kris (mosherocks4), my lovely and amazing partner-in-crime (as well as my awesome Natsu) because it was her birthday yesterday TT^TT **

**gawd~ time flies... &what better way to express your birthday than with the couple that began it all: GRAYSU!~!**

**WARNING:** (Yup~ there's one... just in case, this ain't your 'cup of tea'~) **CHILD x TEEN relationship = 5 YEARS DIFFERENCE**

( - - - - )

"I like you, Gray"

"I like you too, Natsu"

"No, I like-_like_ you..."

"If you say so, kiddo,"

Even a hour later, the rosette could still feel the comforting chill that the raven's hands brought over him; he frowned as his teacher went on rambling about whatever it was they were learning - why did he have to like someone so dense? Why couldn't he like someone his age? And why on earth did that jerk still treat him like he was a kid? He was already 12 and a six-grader to boot! Natsu was practically an adult.

"So how did it go?" A small whisper from his right flanked his attention over to the source, his best friend Lisanna leaned over to him as their teacher continued on with teaching.

Clicking his tongue, "Same as before..." Natsu had confessed his feelings several times to the dense raven high school student but it ended pretty much the same way.

The young silver-haired girl giggled behind her hand -she had long since given up on her friend falling for her but she was fine as long as he was happy- before directing her attention back onto their teacher. The rosette, however, continued to brood over his failure this morning -how do manga make it look so easy- before turning his attention over to a new scheme to confess to his dense childhood friend. He still had a few favors he could use from back when Gray had promised he'd do one favor for every 'A' Natsu got on his exams. Of course he had gotten A's on three of his five exams -he had only used one of his favors so far...

Where would be a good spot to confess again?

He had already tried doing it after school; going so far as to run all the way to the high school down the street, at that time everyone passed him off as a little brother of a classmate. After he had openly confessed to Gray, all he heard around him was: "aww~ did you see that?" followed by: "How adorable~"

The raven had brushed it aside with a chuckle.

He had tried before school and he was still feeling the irritation from that failure and his dense crush! He had made attempts at both of their homes, living next door made that the easiest place to confess, but in every attempt Natsu's confession was brushed aside with the raven's damn chuckle. 'I like you too, Natsu' those words stung hard no matter how many times he heard them.

* * *

He had gone through the whole day without coming up with a single idea of getting Gray to accept his feelings and was currently venting his frustrations out by mindlessly watching television, recalling his walk home with the raven. Gray had been talking about how he wouldn't be able to come over and have dinner with the rosette since he was heading out later to hang out at the mall with some classmate. His cobalt eyes would constantly wander over to the window facing the street when the slightest movement occurred outside.

As five rolled around cobalt eyes caught movement and when he turned, he saw Gray laughing with a few other teens. Most of which were girls. Pouting, Natsu shut the television off as he grabbed his hoodie beside him before yelling, "Dad, I'm heading over to Gray's..." and exiting his house. He was careful not to be seen by his crush or his classmates -he was sure every single one of them would recognize him from confessing at the school.

The mall was just in town, a twenty minute walk; he ran to the other side of the street and drew up the hood of his pullover. The walk was quiet and he was sure that the car with Gray and his classmates had long since past him but just in case, Natsu kept the hood up until he was inside the nearest entrance into the mall.

Lamia Scale was probably the most up-class store in the Fiore Mall so the rosette made sure to quickly leave; the last time he had taken his time in the store, a worker came over and hurried him out with a hush 'get out before you break something, kid'. Natsu walked down to all the stores that he knew were the raven's favorites and checking any other store on the way. At Edolas Books, the last shop he could think of, he heard: "Natsu...?"

Swinging on his heels, he stared surprised at the raven who stood behind him holding a bag from the store across the bookstore -behind Gray, the rosette could see his crush's classmates glancing at them and whispering among themselves.

"What are you doing here? Where's your dad?" Concern laced the raven's voice as he walked closer before crouching down slightly but when Natsu was answering any of his questions, Gray's tone changed: "Natsu... please tell me you weren't _stupid_ to walk all the way here by yourself?"

There were a few times when the rosette had been on the receiving end of Gray's anger and it always ended in the same fashion, "Don't call me stupid, dammit" Natsu growled back.

"Then don't act like you are," the raven grabbed the child's wrist before dragging the other as he briskly walked towards an exit, "I'm taking you home," He added sternly.

Natsu was going to fail yet again before he even started; gritting his teeth, he yank his wrist back: "No! Not before," onyx eyes glanced back and Natsu's voice shook for a moment, "N-not b-before," swallowing, "Dammit, ice pop! I'm in love with you!" The rosette's declaration earned them more attention than the raven felt comfortable with; grabbing a hold of the tan wrist, he dragged Natsu away from prying eyes. When he deemed them alone -standing in an narrow space in between the mall and the building beside it- Gray hissed out: "Do you have _any_ idea what that even _means_?"

Yanking his wrist from the other, the rosette bit back: "Yeah! Its the way I've felt about you for almost a year,"

"You're 12, you're too young to be in love with anyone! Let alone me,"

"But I am! I've tried so hard to give up... to accept that every time you treat me like a kid... to understand that that is all I am to you," Natsu's face scrunched up but he refused to let his crush see him like this. He didn't want to be weak. Only kids cried. And he was not-

A soft pat on the top of his head brought cooling relief to his turmoil of emotions, Gray bent down so they were eye-level and within the onyx eyes before him the rosette could see tears had broken through his own defenses. Raising a hand to wipe them away, his wrist was grabbed again and the raven moved closer. Feeling a little embarrassed with the sudden closeness, Natsu shut his eyes and soon felt something a little rough but cool press against each of his eyes. When a thumb rubbed against his bottom lip, cobalt eyes peered out; the raven was still close to his face and seemed to be studying him. Natsu was sure his face burning up, flushing with enough color in his cheeks to match his hair color but he didn't dare move. He didn't want to move.

"...I won't let you,"

"Huh?"

Onyx eyes lifted and met cobalt ones before the raven repeated himself: "I said, you'd better not change your mind I won't let you," and before the rosette could even ask what he meant; rough lips met innocent ones. Natsu had save his first kiss for Gray -for the moment when the raven would return his feelings. For... today...?

The kiss was all that was needed for the raven to express how he had felt about his younger companion, how he tried so hard to think of Natsu as a kid even when the other started confessing to him but most of all: the kiss said how Gray _still_ felt about the rosette. Small tan hands pushed awkwardly against the raven's shoulder, attempting to put a little space so their owner could breath. The raven smiled into the kiss from this before pulling away, teasing in a light tone: "Breath through your nose, _kiddo_"

Natsu pouted before growling, "I'll show you who's a kid," then smashing his lips against the older male's lips thus taking Gray by surprise but only for a moment. Pale hands cupped tan cheeks gingerly as small hands held onto the fabric of the Gray's shirt; the child's body was feeling tingly as every inch of his skin begged to touch Gray.

Breaking the kiss, the raven wasted no time in holding the shorter male against his chest; he exhaled as his mind screamed at him for giving into temptation. Gray had wanted to suffer through a few more years of waiting for when his companion would old enough and the raven would be able to confess to the rosette how he felt.

"You know..." He began but when he felt the rosette stiffen in his arms, he changed his mind and instead finished the sentence with: "I love you, Natsu..."

* * *

**Csilla: I hope you like this Kris... ;A; just imagine an adorable child-size!Natsu -cough-like_in_that_one_chapter-cough- confessing to Gray ;3**

**I'm working on everything but writer's fucking block is horrible... ;-;**


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